If you’re an online business owner or marketing strategist who wants to stay ahead of the curve, understanding Google’s ranking system is essential.
With changes in algorithm and search engine optimization (SEO) constantly being made by Google, the fierce competition between websites will only get harder with time.
That is why we are here to provide you with up-to-date knowledge of the key Google ranking factors that can help you stay ahead of your competitors and increase visibility for your business in 2023.
So, keep reading on!
7 Major Google Algorithms that Matter a lot in 2023’s Google Search Ranking
Before we move towards ranking factors, learn about 7 major Google algos used by the best SEO services:
Bert (Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers)
The Bert algorithm was released in 2020 and was designed to understand natural language processing (NLP) better.It looks for words or phrases related to each other and uses them to understand a query’s intent better.
Your rankings will improve significantly if you have content on your website that uses related words or phrases.
Panda
The Panda algorithm was released in 2011 to tackle low-quality content on websites.
It works by looking at the overall quality of a website’s content and penalizing those sites with thin or duplicated content.
It also rewards sites with high-quality content by improving their rankings in the search results.
Mobile
The Mobile algorithm was released in 2015 to optimize mobile searches on Google’s platform.
It looks at page speed, responsiveness, and usability when ranking sites in the search results.
If your website doesn’t meet these criteria, you’ll be penalized for your ranking position on mobile devices.
Hummingbird
The Hummingbird algorithm was released in 2013 and is designed around natural language queries.
It can interpret more complex queries than previous algorithms, making it easier for users to find what they’re looking for online.
For website owners, you should focus on writing well-structured sentences and using natural language patterns when creating content.
RankBrain
RankBrain is an artificial intelligence (AI) system developed by Google that looks at how people interact with a given website before ranking it in the search results.
For example, people spend more time on a particular page or click through more than usual.
In that case, RankBrain will rank that site higher than others in its category due to its popularity among users.
Medic
Medic is an algorithm specifically designed for health-related websites such as hospitals, clinics, physicians’ offices, pharmacies, etc., so they can rank higher when someone searches for medical information online.
This algorithm looks at the trustworthiness of the source material and the accuracy of information provided before giving it a high ranking amongst other similar websites providing similar services or products.
E-A-T (Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness)
The E-A-T (Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness) algorithm was introduced in 2020 by Google. However, in 2023 it is now upgraded to E-E-A-T(Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.)It looks at the author’s first-hand experience, credentials, and reputation to determine whether the content provided is trustworthy.
It also examines how authoritative the website is within its industry or niche. If your website has been linked to reputable sources, then Google is more likely to rank it higher in the search results.
9 Ranking Factors that Matter the Most in 2023!
Now that you are familiar with the major Google algorithms of 2023, let’s move on and discuss 9 Super Important Google Ranking Factors in 2023:
Website Design that is Mobile Friendly!
Having a website design that is mobile-friendly, can make or break your 2023’s ranking. Why? Because 75% prefer to use mobile friendly sites. It has been also reported that 48% of users felt frustrated if sites were not optimized for mobile.
Not just that, 67% said that when they visit a mobile friendly site, they’re more into buying that certain product or service.
Which is quite insane!
We’re not just saying it all by ourselves. It’s a survey conducted by Think with Google. So, Google still prefers it in 2023 as the consumer behavior remains the same.
So in short, your website needs to have an intuitive navigation system, fast loading times, and mobile-responsiveness so that it looks good no matter what device it’s viewed on.
“Take a mobile-first approach, or you’re gone. The times ahead are crystal clear. People want ease, and mobile companies are providing them. That’s why, people are now doing most of the things via mobile, be it shopping, learning, or even managing important apps”, says Tom Miller, Director of Marketing at Fitness Volt, while emphasizing the importance of mobile-first approach in 2023.
Quality, Well-Researched, and Optimized Content
Quality content is essential for SEO success. When creating content for web pages or blog posts, consider using relevant keywords throughout the text, as this will help boost your ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Jonathan Merry, Founder & CEO at Moneyzine, says, “Ensure that the content you create is well-researched and accurate, as this will increase its value in the eyes of users and search engine algorithms alike.”
Again, we’d love to emphasize on content as Google Helpful Content Update that rolled out back in March 2022 clearly states the do’s and don’ts of quality content.
So, while producing content, it is recommended to visit the guidelines and make your content according to it.
Image Optimization
It’s 2023 so don’t think that Image Optimization isn’t something to care about. Google now has its own Google Lens for visual search. So, ignoring it is just a mediocre seo move.
Images can be used to add visual interest to web pages while also helping boost SEO performance by adding relevant keywords into image tags and titles within the HTML code of your site.
Additionally, optimizing images by compressing them can reduce their file size without sacrificing quality which helps speed up page loading times – something that search engines consider when determining where webpages should appear within SERPs.
David B, Owner of Blockimize, says, “Our brain craves visual content. When readers land on our websites, they don’t want long paragraphs of text like a school essay. They want information, sure, but they also love eye-catching, helpful, and soothing visual content. Give them. As the time passes, we need more engaging images in our content to impress readers and Google”.
Page Speed
Google considers page speed when ranking websites because a website’s load time can impact user experience and we all know how vital user experience is for the SEO.
If your website takes too long to load, users may become frustrated and leave without engaging with your content.
It’s important to optimize your website for speed, including compressing images, caching plugins, and optimizing database queries.
Rikin Shah, Founder & Head of Content at GetSure says, “If you can only do one great thing for your website, it must be speed. Make it fast and responsive. With each second your website takes to load, you lose dozens of potential sales. The worst part is that those readers may remember this experience, and never visit your site again”.
Here’s a quick guide on how you can check and optimize page speed:
- Check the speed of your website using tools like Pingdom or Google PageSpeed Insights.
- Analyze the results and identify improvement areas, such as image optimization and minifying code.
- Make changes to address these issues, such as optimizing images and compressing code.
- Re-test your website to ensure that the changes have positively affected page speed.
Serious Impact of Voice Search
With voice assistants like Alexa becoming increasingly popular over recent years, voice searches now account for a large portion of all searches made on Google daily – making them an important factor when considering SEO efforts for websites in 2023.
According to Think with Google, 27% searchers use voice search features on mobile to ask queries.
So, businesses need to take care about voice search optimization too.
Raine Gui, Director of Model Chic says, “Keep in mind that optimizing for voice searches requires businesses to think carefully about how people might phrase their queries using voice commands — instead of typing them out manually into a search bar.
Social Signals & Links
When ranking websites, Google also looks at social signals such as retweets, shares, and likes, which contribute to the overall backlink value of a website.
While they may not be as important as other SEO factors, engaging on social media can help boost your online presence and increase the backlink value of your site.
Additionally, backlinks from other quality websites can help increase traffic to your website and improve its rankings in search results.
Miriam Domer, Content Marketer at Legal Finders, says, “Bring as many social signals to your site as possible. Be it social media sharing, links, referrals, press, or mentions. Google favors content that’s backed by people. And you need Google’s favor to rank higher.”
So make sure you build relationships with other industry professionals or influencers willing to link to your content or products.
So make sure you build relationships with other industry professionals or influencers willing to link to your content or products and enhance the overall backlink value of your website.
Interlinking Structure
Interlinking is one of the most overlooked SEO elements, but it’s critical for improving user experience and helping search engines crawl through a website more effectively.
According to Search Engine Journal:
“Link architecture – the method of internal linking on your site – is a crucial step in site design if you want your site indexed by search engines. It plays a critical role in Googlebot’s ability to find your site’s pages and ensures that your visitors can navigate and enjoy your site.”
So, by linking related content together within the same site, users can easily navigate through different pages on your site and find what they’re looking for quickly.
Additionally, interlinking helps search engines index a website more easily, resulting in higher rankings.
Business Information that Showcases Your Authenticity
Having accurate business information displayed on your website and Google My Business is essential for establishing trustworthiness with customers and showing them that you are a legitimate company.
Ensure all your contact information (phone number, address) is consistent across different platforms like Yelp or Google Maps to ensure everything is clear when potential customers try to reach out to you directly.
Also Douglas McShane, Operations Director at Leeds First Aid Courses, chimes in that, “Adding reviews or testimonials from previous customers can help establish credibility with new visitors who may be hesitant about engaging with a business they don’t know much about.”
On-Page Optimization & Technical SEO
On-page optimization involves optimizing individual web pages to make them more visible in search engine results pages (SERPs).
This includes optimizing title tags and meta descriptions and incorporating keywords into page content so that search engine crawlers quickly understand what the page is about and accurately rank it accordingly in SERPs.
When asked, Ramunas Berkmanas, Digital Marketing Specialist at Ramberk, said that, “In simple words, technical SEO focuses more on how easy it is for users (and search engines) to navigate through a website by ensuring all links are working properly.”
Or by setting up redirects if needed, so visitors don’t get stuck at dead ends while browsing through the site.
Both are important as ignoring one or both can have a huge bad impact on your overall website ranking health.
Verdict!
Though SEO evolves over time, however, some basics will remain the same. For example, producing high-quality content that adds value, optimizing web pages for search engine crawlers, and ensuring your website pages are properly interlinked.
Nailing these ranking factors will help you stay ahead of the competition and ensure that your website is visible on search engine results pages.
As Claudia Torres, Founder of TheFab20s, says, “No doubt that SEO is changing fast. Everyday. Unexpected Google rollouts, changing consumer behavior, AI revolution, and more. Keep up with the latest digital marketing trends to ensure your strategies align with what’s working today, right now”
Good luck with your 2023’s SEO journey!